CHARLOTTETOWN, P.E.I. — It wasn't the way Charlottetown Rugby Football Club (CRFC) members expected to get invited to the nationals, but they will take it.
The women’s squad was preparing for a trip to Perth-Andover, N.B., on Saturday to play Club de Rugby de Quebec (CRQ) with the winner earning a berth in the Aug. 2-4 nationals in Markham, Ont.
But CRFC officials received word early Friday morning that two teams involved in a qualifier in Western Canada forfeited and national organizers granted both Quebec and CRFC entry into the four-team nationals.
“It would have been a whole lot more fun if we earned it the right way,” Charlottetown head coach James Voye said early Friday afternoon.
“We’re still going to get to go to nationals, we just didn't have to win a qualifier to get there.”
The team will use Saturday to practice while a couple of the girls will fill out the division 2 team’s roster for a league game in Windsor, N.S.
What is remarkable is that the club is in its third season.
It won the Nova Scotia division 1 league title while going undefeated in 2017 and 2018.
The squad defeated the Fredericton Loyalists from New Brunswick earlier this summer to become the Maritime champs and advance to the game with Quebec.
The club created a division 2 squad in 2018 and won the Nova Scotia league title.
“People, I think, kind of wrote us off whenever we first joined the Nova Scotia league,” Ellen Murphy said after a physical practice Tuesday at Charlottetown Rural High School.
“For two years later, to be in the running to be at a national championship for club rugby is pretty exciting.”
Alysha Corrigan said playing against competition outside the region is a great opportunity for the club.
“We have put a lot of work in over these two years and kind of built a great platform here, so it will be really good to see where we stand.”
The division 1 and 2 teams practice together. The players are very familiar to those who have watched high school rugby and the UPEI Panthers. They include the likes of Emily Keen, Tara Campbell and Rebecca Chapman. Many of the women have played together for years – forging a bond that doesn’t happen overnight.
“It makes a huge difference. They know each other,” Voye said. “Over the years, you learn to play for those girls a little bit more.”
It’s a balanced roster that provides the opportunity to adjust the game plan based on their opponents’ weaknesses.
Murphy left Prince Edward Island after high school and played for the St. FX X-Women and Ottawa Gee Gees university squads.
“It’s really exciting now to be able to come back home and play with these girls and represent Charlottetown and P.E.I. Rugby as a whole,” the 25-year-old Augustine Cove native said.
The Canadian Rugby Club Championships began in 2018 and alternates between men's and women's each year.
The four-team nationals will also consist of a team from Ontario and Western Canada. There will be a semifinal on Aug. 2 with the winners playing for gold and the losers battling for bronze.
Voye said the Island women are proud and have a bit of a chip on their shoulders.
“They want to show the rest of the country that they’re up to the standard,” he said.
Related links:
• Charlottetown Rugby Football Club Facebook page.
• Canadian Rugby Club Championship website.
• Charlottetown Rugby Football Club repeats as Nova Scotia league champs.
Roster
A look at Charlottetown Rugby Football Club’s division 1 team that was supposed to play Saturday in New Brunswick.
Ellen Murphy
Frances MacWilliam
Sarah MacLeod
Sophie Carragher
Lauren Sheidow
Megan Larkin
Niki Triantafillou
Becca Marie
Emily Keen
Danielle Lacey
Maggie Grimmer
Anneke Dykerman
Alysha Corrigan
Maddy Shea
Tara Campbell
Alicia Rose
Stephanie Lynn
Nicole Davies
Kalie MacKinnon
Sophie Duguay
Allyson Ayles
Division 2
A look at the division 2 roster for Saturday’s game in Windsor, N.S.
Elizabeth McQuaid
Brittney White
Amy Andrews
Chloé Benoit
Sarah Visser
Emily McQuaid
Alyson Clow
Kristi Stewart
Bella Walsh
Madison Vos
Kathleen Sullivan
Jennifer Woods
Tessa Hood
Mia Fradsham
Tori Hogan
Kristina Vanneste
MaryJan Malone
Alyx Hodson
